Robert "Bob" Meldrum
Robert "Bob" Meldrum passed away
peacefully on Sun., Dec. 28, 2008 at the Winchester District Memorial
Hospital with his family by his side.
Bob was born in Ormond on Oct. 3, 1925 to George and Greta (nee
Summers) Meldrum. He is predeceased by his wife Pauline (nee Billings),
and his son Len. He is survived by his children Georgena Meldrum
(Bruce Green), Barbara (Gerald) Wicks, Lorraine (James) Drain,
Ronda (Randy) Lepine, Ralph (Linda) Meldrum, Joanne (George) Wicks,
and Brenda Young (Mike Crispin). He will be missed by his 14 grandchildren
and 10 great-grandchildren.
Bob had been ill for some time, but continued to live life to
the fullest doing what he did best - touching the lives of others.
He worked in construction, was a labourer, and a man of many trades.
His purpose in life was being kind to others. He was well known
in the community, and will be greatly missed by the many people
who had the pleasure of knowing him. He was well known for the
numerous tips he would give out. He always had to get rolls of
coins when he went to the bank: this was a necessity and was extremely
important to him. People in other areas would look at him and
think this gesture of tip-giving was very strange, but he would
still insist on tipping them for their services. Another enjoyment
of Bob's was the casino. One of Dad's favourite pastimes was fishing;
he had many great sleeps in the boat, and always talked about
"the ones that got away".
People in the community would always comment on how his generosity
was so extraordinary. One could always tell when he was at their
home, leaving gifts for them on their doorstep; it could have
been a chicken, turkey, fish, blueberries, or even a giant bag
of potatoes. Another passion for Bob was scrapping metal. He enjoyed
working in the junk on a daily basis. People would just stop by
his house if they needed something from his yard, and nine times
out of 10, he would have the perfect item that they were looking
for. Family, friends, neighbours, and even people driving by would
stop and find treasures, which he would gladly give away. He loved
buying lottery tickets, and if he won $100 which was common for
him, you can be sure the seller would receive a $10 tip. If anyone
showed him an act of kindness he would always want to repay them
in some way or another. He never wanted to accept these gestures
from others. He could not understand that he gave to so many people
and that is why they wanted to give back. An act of kindness goes
a long way, and makes you a better person.
A particular day in June of this past year at the Ottawa Hospital,
when he received his diagnosis, he was more concerned about the
other patients that he had seen that day in the hospital. He was
not concerned about himself. This is one of the many qualities
that made our Dad extraordinary. His battle with cancer did not
slow him down. He still went to the Winchester dump, and stopped
every morning at Brenda and Mike's home with a handful of scratch
tickets and the Ottawa Sun newspaper.
When he found out he did not have much time left, he worried about
raising chickens, and trying to get blueberries one last time
for those special people in his life. The family helped him with
his to-do list, which seemed to make him more at ease.
We as a family would like to see the memory
of our father live on. We ask that if the people of the community
wish to honour our father's memory that they do so by making donations
to the Winchester District Memorial Hospital Foundation, to purchase
needed medical equipment bearing our father's name. In doing so,
he would always be helping someone, and he would be giving back
to the community who gave him so much.
Not once, but twice, Dad had tragic house fires. It was you, the
community, who came forward and showed your generosity in many
significant ways.
We would like to express our thanks to the ambulance drivers,
Dr. Steele, Dr. O'Connor, Dr. Racine, Allison, emergency nurses,
surgical nurses, dietary, housekeeping, and Rev. North for their
care, kind words, and special hugs. Everyone at Winchester District
Memorial Hospital showed our family so much compassion, which
was greatly appreciated.
We apologize if we have hurt anyone's feelings by having a private
family service, but this was Dad's wish. We all know how Dad was
thought of so highly by those he had touched in so many ways.
We appreciate everything everyone has done for our family over
the years. We feel truly blessed to have had such a remarkable
man in our lives for this many years.
When you look at how little gestures can change peoples' lives,
you can see what being rich is all about. He was a legend; one
of a kind.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
The Meldrum Family
- Georgena, Barbara, Lorraine, Ronda, Ralph, Joanne, and Brenda.
The funeral arrangements were entrusted to the Winchester Funeral Home.